The landmine RDL high pull is a compound hinge-and-pull exercise performed facing a barbell anchored in a landmine, driving from a Romanian deadlift into a high pull for theglutes and hamstringsand upper back. Because the bar swings up toward you on the landmine arc, the pull finishes close to the chest without drifting forward, and the loaded end never has to be caught, so you can pull hard. The hinge stays a strict RDL; only the finish is explosive. Athletes program it as a power accessory early in a lower-body or full-body session.
What Muscles Does the Landmine RDL High Pull Work?
- Primary: Hamstrings (biceps femoris, semitendinosus), gluteus maximus
- Secondary: Upper trapezius, posterior deltoid, erector spinae
- Tertiary: Forearm flexors, rhomboids, calves (gastrocnemius)
How Do You Set Up for the Landmine RDL High Pull?
Wedge one end of the barbell into the landmine sleeve and load the free end. Stand facing the pivot with the collar end between your feet, feet hip-width apart and toes pointing at the landmine. Bend your knees slightly, push your hips back and grip the collar end with both hands stacked, palms toward you and arms straight. Pull your shoulders down, flatten your back and lift the bar to standing before rep one.
How Do You Perform the Landmine RDL High Pull?
- Push your hips back with the knees soft, letting the bar slide down your thighs along the arc toward the pivot.
- Lower until your hamstrings are fully stretched, torso near parallel and the bar just below the knees, back flat.
- Snap the hips forward and stand fast, letting the bar accelerate up the arc while the arms stay straight past the thighs.
- Pull the elbows up and out as the bar passes your hips, drawing the collar end to your lower chest with the elbows above the hands.
- Catch the top for one count, standing tall with the bar an inch off your chest and the shoulders down.
- Lower the bar to arm's length under control, then hinge again into the next rep.
What Are the Key Form Cues?
- Hips, then elbows: the bar should be moving from the hip snap before the arms bend; if the elbows lead, the pull becomes a row.
- Elbows over wrists at the top: point them toward the ceiling so the traps finish the pull instead of the biceps.
- Keep the bar brushing your thighs on the way down so it stays on the arc rather than swinging out.
- Push the floor away with the whole foot as you stand, not just the heels.
- Let the shoulder blades drop at the top rather than shrugging them up to the ears.
What Are the Most Common Mistakes?
- Loading the sleeve until the pull dies at the hips: the bar stops at the belt and the arms heave it up, so choose a plate you can snap to the chest.
- Pulling with the arms from the bottom: the hinge loses its stretch and the hamstrings never drive, so keep the arms straight until the hips finish.
- Rounding the lower back at the bottom: flexing the lumbar spine under load and then extending it fast loads the discs, so stop the hinge where your back stays flat.
- Bending the knees into a squat: sitting down shifts the load to the quads and shortens the hamstring stretch, so keep the shins near vertical.
- Curling the bar to the chest at the top: the biceps take over and the elbows drop below the hands, so drive the elbows up and out.
What Are the Best Landmine RDL High Pull Variations?
- Landmine RDL: the same hinge with no pull, the regression for learning the arc and the stretch.
- Sumo Deadlift High Pull: the free barbell version, heavier and demanding a controlled catch.
- Landmine single-arm RDL high pull: one hand on the collar end, adding an anti-rotation demand to the hinge.
- Kickstand landmine RDL high pull: one foot set back on the toes, loading the front leg through the hinge.
- Kettlebell swing high pull: the same hip snap into an elbow-high finish with a bell.
How Do You Progress the Landmine RDL High Pull?
- Add one 10-pound plate to the sleeve once every set finishes with the elbows above the hands.
- Work from 6 reps up to 10 before adding a plate; past 10 the pull loses its snap.
- Add a set at a time from 3 up to 5, keeping the rest fixed.
- Pause one count at the bottom of the hinge before each snap so the hips, not a bounce, start the pull.
How Should You Program the Landmine RDL High Pull?
Place the landmine RDL high pull early in a lower-body or full-body session, after the warm-up and before or right after your main squat or deadlift while you are still fresh. Train it 1 to 2 times per week for 3 to 5 sets of 6 to 10 reps, resting 90 seconds between sets. Pair it with a landmine press so the session covers a pull and a push on the same arc.